Βασιλειῶν Αʹ 27

1 καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ αὐτοῦ λέγων νῦν προστεθήσομαι ἐν ἡμέρᾳ μιᾷ εἰς χεῖρας Σαουλ καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν μοι ἀγαθόν ἐὰν μὴ σωθῶ εἰς γῆν ἀλλοφύλων καὶ ἀνῇ Σαουλ τοῦ ζητεῖν με εἰς πᾶν ὅριον Ισραηλ καὶ σωθήσομαι ἐκ χειρὸς αὐτοῦ

David, however, said to himself, “One of these days now I will be swept away by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the Philistines. Then Saul will stop searching for me all over Israel, and I will slip out of his hand.”

2 καὶ ἀνέστη Δαυιδ καὶ οἱ τετρακόσιοι ἄνδρες μετ’ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπορεύθη πρὸς Αγχους υἱὸν Αμμαχ βασιλέα Γεθ

So David set out with his six hundred men and went to Achish son of Maoch, the king of Gath.

3 καὶ ἐκάθισεν Δαυιδ μετὰ Αγχους ἐν Γεθ αὐτὸς καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες αὐτοῦ ἕκαστος καὶ ὁ οἶκος αὐτοῦ καὶ Δαυιδ καὶ ἀμφότεραι αἱ γυναῖκες αὐτοῦ Αχινααμ ἡ Ιεζραηλῖτις καὶ Αβιγαια ἡ γυνὴ Ναβαλ τοῦ Καρμηλίου

David and his men settled in Gath with Achish. Each man had his family with him, and David had his two wives: Ahinoam of Jezreel and Abigail of Carmel, the widow of Nabal.

4 καὶ ἀνηγγέλη τῷ Σαουλ ὅτι πέφευγεν Δαυιδ εἰς Γεθ καὶ οὐ προσέθετο ἔτι ζητεῖν αὐτόν

And when Saul learned that David had fled to Gath, he no longer searched for him.

5 καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Αγχους εἰ δὴ εὕρηκεν ὁ δοῦλός σου χάριν ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς σου δότωσαν δή μοι τόπον ἐν μιᾷ τῶν πόλεων τῶν κατ’ ἀγρὸν καὶ καθήσομαι ἐκεῖ καὶ ἵνα τί κάθηται ὁ δοῦλός σου ἐν πόλει βασιλευομένῃ μετὰ σοῦ

Then David said to Achish, “If I have found favor in your eyes, let me be assigned a place in one of the outlying towns, so I can live there. For why should your servant live in the royal city with you?”

6 καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτῷ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ἐκείνῃ τὴν Σεκελακ διὰ τοῦτο ἐγενήθη Σεκελακ τῷ βασιλεῖ τῆς Ιουδαίας ἕως τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης

That day Achish gave him Ziklag, and to this day it still belongs to the kings of Judah.

7 καὶ ἐγενήθη ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν ἡμερῶν ὧν ἐκάθισεν Δαυιδ ἐν ἀγρῷ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων τέσσαρας μῆνας

And the time that David lived in Philistine territory amounted to a year and four months.

8 καὶ ἀνέβαινεν Δαυιδ καὶ οἱ ἄνδρες αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐπετίθεντο ἐπὶ πάντα τὸν Γεσιρι καὶ ἐπὶ τὸν Αμαληκίτην καὶ ἰδοὺ ἡ γῆ κατῳκεῖτο ἀπὸ ἀνηκόντων ἡ ἀπὸ Γελαμψουρ τετειχισμένων καὶ ἕως γῆς Αἰγύπτου

Now David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. (From ancient times these people had inhabited the land extending to Shur and Egypt.)

9 καὶ ἔτυπτε τὴν γῆν καὶ οὐκ ἐζωογόνει ἄνδρα καὶ γυναῖκα καὶ ἐλάμβανεν ποίμνια καὶ βουκόλια καὶ ὄνους καὶ καμήλους καὶ ἱματισμόν καὶ ἀνέστρεψαν καὶ ἤρχοντο πρὸς Αγχους

Whenever David attacked a territory, he did not leave a man or woman alive, but he took the flocks and herds, the donkeys, camels, and clothing. Then he would return to Achish,

10 καὶ εἶπεν Αγχους πρὸς Δαυιδ ἐπὶ τίνα ἐπέθεσθε σήμερον καὶ εἶπεν Δαυιδ πρὸς Αγχους κατὰ νότον τῆς Ιουδαίας καὶ κατὰ νότον Ιεσμεγα καὶ κατὰ νότον τοῦ Κενεζι

who would ask him, “What have you raided today?” And David would reply, “The Negev of Judah,” or “The Negev of Jerahmeel,” or “The Negev of the Kenites.”

11 καὶ ἄνδρα καὶ γυναῖκα οὐκ ἐζωογόνησεν τοῦ εἰσαγαγεῖν εἰς Γεθ λέγων μὴ ἀναγγείλωσιν εἰς Γεθ καθ’ ἡμῶν λέγοντες τάδε Δαυιδ ποιεῖ καὶ τόδε τὸ δικαίωμα αὐτοῦ πάσας τὰς ἡμέρας ἃς ἐκάθητο Δαυιδ ἐν ἀγρῷ τῶν ἀλλοφύλων

David did not leave a man or woman alive to be brought to Gath, for he said, “Otherwise they will report us, saying, ‘This is what David did.’” And this was David’s custom the whole time he lived in Philistine territory.

12 καὶ ἐπιστεύθη Δαυιδ ἐν τῷ Αγχους σφόδρα λέγων ᾔσχυνται αἰσχυνόμενος ἐν τῷ λαῷ αὐτοῦ ἐν Ισραηλ καὶ ἔσται μοι δοῦλος εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα

So Achish trusted David, thinking, “Since he has made himself an utter stench to his people Israel, he will be my servant forever.”